Paper Hearts
by Copperpelt
Summary: The world has fallen into an economic Depression, leaving many people without money. Even Alice, a girl from a once-wealthy family, has fallen on hard times. However, despite her economic setbacks, Alice decides to help out a local paperboy, who struggles to make a living. A friendship begins to form, which gradually blooms into something more, but not everything is black and white
1. Hard Times

_~O~_

Alice walked to the closet in her room and removed a purple dress from the hanger. She inspected the dress and poked her finger through a hole that had formed in the fabric and sighed; that was the last of her good dresses. She glanced back at the closet and the rest of the tattered clothes that hung before her. All of them had visible wear, and those that had been salvaged had patches in the cloth in order to extend the article's life.

It wasn't always like this. At one point, she had had plenty of nice clothes. They didn't have holes in them, or poorly-done patch jobs. That had changed when the economy bottomed out and sent the country into the largest Depression it had ever seen. Her parents had lost their jobs and all of their money, and because of this, they were unable to take care of her.

So, they had sent her off to live with her grandfather in hopes that she could at least have food on her plate. It had been difficult to adjust to this type of lifestyle; counting pennies, wearing clothes till they fell apart, and having to deal without dinner every now and again. The Depression hadn't hit her grandfather all that bad. In fact, he probably had more money than her parents.

The only reason he escaped with any money was because he worked for the banks and had been able to pull aside some of his money before the Rush hit. Alice knew that money wouldn't last forever, though. Nothing lasted forever. She sighed again and slipped on the dress and made her way to the kitchen. Her grandfather wasn't there, like usual. Since everything changed, he had been doing odd-jobs for anyone who would pay him, even if the pay was a few pennies.

To him, those few pennies could eventually buy things they needed. Alice didn't see how, but she knew there was no reason to bother arguing with her grandfather's logic. She was used to the lifestyle of getting extravagant paydays, the right afterwards going out and buying anything they wanted. Sadly, it had been that lifestyle that had caused these hard times.

People had been buying things with money they didn't have, and the economy had suffered as a result. Alice strode across the kitchen to the small icebox to find something to eat. When she opened the heavy door, she wasn't hit with the usual coolness. It then occurred to her that there was no ice in the bottom of the contraption, and she could see that the food was starting to spoil. That was when she noticed the note from her grandfather on top of the icebox. _Ice ran out last night. Take this money and go pick up a block today._

Beside the note was about fifty cents, and Alice had a feeling that her grandfather had struggled to gather up all that money. She scooped up the money and tucked it away in the small pocket of her dress skirt. With the money in tow, she left out of the house and started up the road to the main heart of the city. She walked along the sidewalk, which had begun to fall apart from lack of maintenance.

However, the streets in which cars drove along were in worse shape than the sidewalks. The streets were nothing more than mud puddles now, making it to where most cars couldn't even drive through them without getting their tires stuck. So, to avoid dirtying up her shoes and dress, Alice stuck with the sidewalk, stepping over cracks and weeds that had popped through the concrete.

When she reached the city, she was met with a portrait of what everyone's lives had become. There were people sitting outside of buildings, obviously homeless, begging for any change people would spare. Except, nobody had the change to spare.

It tugged at Alice's heart to see people who were worse off than her, so as she passed by beggars, she didn't make eye-contact. The store that sold ice was only a block or so away, so she wouldn't have to encounter that many beggars, which she was thankful for. To Alice, beggars were what she could become if things continued to go like they were, and she didn't want to be on the sidewalk, pleading for money.

Alice stopped at the edge of the street and stared across at the store that sold the ice she needed. Traffic was heavier than usual that day, so she had no choice but the wait for it to clear up. Despite the Depression, people who had the money to put fuel in their cars still drove around.

Albeit, they didn't drive very often, but they didn't have to scrap their cars like many others had to just to get a few extra dollars. As she waited for a gap in traffic, Alice allowed her eyes to wander around. As she did, her eyes caught a young man selling newspapers on the corner of the street. He was shouting out the headlines, trying to gain people's attention and get them to buy a paper.

Alice noted that the young man appeared around her age, maybe a few years older. He also was fairly easy on the eyes, she noted. The paperboy shouted the headlines at a man that walked by, and the man stopped and slapped the paper out of the teen's hands. "I don't need some damn paper to tell me the world's gone to Hell!" the passerby yelled, "Quit trying to haggle me out of money, brat!"

The man then stormed off, leaving the paperboy to pick up the pieces of parchment. Alice felt bad for the teen, so she walked over to him and knelt down. "Here, let me help," she said as she picked up several pages. Alice noticed that the paper had landed in a puddle, causing the pages to fall apart and the ink to run. The paperboy ran a hand through his hair and said, "My boss isn't going to like this…..He'll definitely take it out of my pay…."

Alice shook newspaper ink from her hands and said, "It's just one paper." The boy looked at her as if she had insulted him. "That's ten cents that I need to make a living!" he snapped. Alice flinched back, surprised at the sudden outburst.

She then stood up, brushed the dirt from her dress, and said, "I'm sorry. I'll be on my way now." She then hurried back down the sidewalk, and much to her relief, the traffic had let up. Alice then quickly hurried across the street to get her grandfather's ice, never once glancing back at the paperboy.

_~O~_

Shun swore under his breath as he stared down at the ruined newspaper. His boss would know if a paper was missing and if there was no money for it. Shun knew his boss would be angry, and he didn't want the paper to be taken out of his paycheck. He needed the money just to put something into his stomach that night.

Shun sighed. His shift didn't end until sundown, so he had several more hours till he returned to the publishing office to turn in all the papers he didn't sell that day. He glanced down at the stack he had been given that morning; the only paper missing was the one the man had knocked down. He reached down and picked up another paper and waved it around, shouting the headlines in an attempt to gain anyone's attention.

By the end of the day, he had sold three papers, and was left with a stack of about sixteen. His boss wouldn't be happy. Shun picked up the remaining papers and made his way back to the publishing office. As he walked inside, he saw the other employees that sold papers in different sections of the city had sold more papers than him. While they had five or six papers left from the morning's stack, Shun had twice as many left.

He got in the line that led to where the leftover papers were dropped off to be counted and disposed off. Standing in front of the drop-off was the boss. His hawk-like eyes glanced at each stack of papers dropped off before him, counting and calculating how much money he had lost. When Shun's turn came, he dropped off the massive stack of papers and was about to hurry from the office, but the boss stopped him. Mr. Wade, or Boss Wade, as he liked to be called, took the cigar out of his mouth and asked harshly, "What the hell is this?"

Shun turned around and said quietly, "My leftovers…." Boss Wade knocked ash off the end of his cigar and asked, "You only sold four papers today?" Shun adverted his eyes away from his superior and said, "Well…..I actually sold three….Somebody knocked one paper out of my hand and it was ruined…." Wade took a hit from his cigar, then blew the smoke into Shun's face.

The raven-haired teen tried desperately not to cough and gasp for air. "You always come up short in sales compared to the others. This is the second week in a row that you've returned with over ten papers. That's money I've lost, and in this economy, I can't afford to lose money," Wade said harshly.

Shun clenched his hands into fists and said, "Well, I'm sorry that people in my part of town don't want to buy your damn papers." The boss reached out and grabbed Shun by the collar of his shirt. "You don't backtalk me, kid!" He then pushed Shun, and the raven-haired teen fell back on the stacks of leftover papers.

Pain shot through his back from where he landed wrong on a stack of papers. Boss Wade now loomed over Shun and said, "You're worthless. I'm signing your paycheck while you cost me profit, and with the way things are now, I don't have money to waste on worthless employees. Get out of here, and don't come back." Shun felt his eyes go wide.

He scrambled to his feet and said, "No, please! I need this job! Please don't fire me!" Shun felt tears starting to sting at his eyes. He was barely getting by with the paycheck from this job. If he were to lose this, then he'd be out in the streets begging before sunrise. "I swear, I can increase my quota! Just give me a chance! Please, Mr. Wade!" he pleaded.

His boss glared at him, then took the hot end of his cigar and stuck it on one of the stacks of leftover papers. Shun watched as the embers burned the headlines. "Why the hell should I give you a second chance? You've shown me the past two weeks that you're incapable of selling on the same level as the others," the boss said bitterly, "I don't want to waste anymore of my profit on you."

Shun shook his head, not wanting to believe that this was happening. "No, please don't do this! My grandfather's health is bad! We need the money for food and his medicine! Please, give me a second chance!" Shun begged. He had never groveled like this before, but times were different now. Money and jobs were scarce, so in order to hold onto those two things, people had to stoop to lows they had never gone to before.

Wade looked down at Shun for a moment, then finally said with an indignant huff, "Fine, but you have one week to get your sale levels to where the others are. If that doesn't happen, then you're out of here. Now, get out of my sight before I change my mind." Shun was flooded with relief. He bowed his head and said with a smile, "Thank you, thank you so much, Mr. Wade. You won't regret it, I promise."

The boss simply scuffed and vanished in his office. Shun, relieved that he still had his job, hurried out of the publishing office and headed home. It didn't take him long to reach the ramshackle home he shared with his grandfather and another family. The house was located in a community of other houses that were built by homeless people that had lost their homes during the Crash.

Many of them were crudely built, but the one Shun and his grandfather stayed in was of a slightly better quality than most; at least their's didn't lean and threaten to fall over. Shun walked into the house and hung his hat on the hook. "I'm home," he said.

The house had two rooms; one room where everyone slept that was connected to a makeshift kitchen, and the bathroom, which wasn't much more than a bowl and an old bathtub. In the main room, Shun found his grandfather sleeping on the mattress that they had found just for him. "He's been sleeping most of the day," a voice said from the other side of the room.

Shun turned around and was faced with his childhood friend, Dan. Their families had both lost everything after the Crash, but they had stuck together in an effort to survive. It was a good thing they did. Between what little income Shun got from selling papers, and the little money Dan's parents made, they made enough to put food on the table and get his grandfather his medicine.

"Has his cough gotten any better?" Shun asked. Dan shook his head and told him, "No, it's about the same." Shun sighed heavily. "Living in these kind of conditions isn't helping him either, I'm sure," he said sadly. Dan nodded and said, "Well, dinner's cooked, so fix you a plate." Shun nodded and walked over to the cast iron pot that rested on the table. He removed the lid and saw a soup had been made out of food that was about to spoil; this was a common staple for them.

Shun fixed himself a bowl and sat down on the floor to eat. Dan joined him and the two of them sat and ate their meal in silence. After they were done, Shun asked, "Your folks have to work late again?" Dan nodded but didn't add in any input. Shun didn't blame him.

Dan's father worked in the industry, which wasn't booming by anyone's standards. As for his mother. Well…..She did what she had to in order to make money. It wasn't uncommon for Dan's father to work multiple shifts at the factory, or for his mother to be gone a couple of days, only to return home for a few hours.

Things were just that way, now. Shun stared down at the empty bowl in his hands, wishing he could have more food to fill the hollowness that had settled in his stomach, but he knew he couldn't do that. There just wasn't enough food for him to get seconds.

As he stared into the bowl, he said quietly, "I wonder how much longer this will last….." Beside him, Dan shook his head and told him, "I don't think anyone knows that answer to that."

* * *

A little idea I came up with yesterday. I probably won't update this regularly, since I'm still working on Vampire's Call, but I figured it'd be nice for me to change up my pace and put something else on the site, since I've been working on one story for a while now. Just a change of pace. I might update this one when I'm having a writer's block on my other story, so don't expect this to be updated everyday. I also figured I'd let this story steep in the site for a while and see how it does. Anywho, I hope you all like this new idea, so please read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	2. A Simple Act Of Kindness

_~O~_

Alice dumped herself a small helping of boiled cabbage into a bowl and sat down at the kitchen table. Being able to afford freshly grown food was a luxury, but her grandfather had started a garden behind the house years ago, and it was producing vegetables everyday. However, they still couldn't eat a lot of the food they harvested; they had to conserve.

Alice's grandfather would sometimes give their close neighbors some of what they grew. Usually when this happened, they had harvested too much of something, and wouldn't eat it all before it all spoiled. So, to keep from being wasteful, they'd simply donate it to those around them who needed it. Of course, the neighbors didn't mind a little charity.

Alice reached across the table and grabbed the salt shaker. She sprinkled a small amount of top of her food and stirred the cabbage around. Steam rose from the bowl and slowly dissipated in the air as it cooled. While Alice sat there waiting for her food to cool down, she realized that her mind kept wandering back to the paperboy she had seen in town.

The desperate-look in his eyes when he said how he needed the money continued to haunt Alice. She had seen people who were tight for money, but never to that extent. Even the homeless beggars didn't look that desperate. It bothered Alice that she didn't know why that paperboy needed the money so badly. He had a job, which made him more fortunate than most people at the time. Alice figured that should have been enough. Perhaps it wasn't. _Who am I to say what's enough and what isn't? I don't know anything about his life….., _she thought to herself.

Alice was still deep in thought when her grandfather returned home. She didn't hear him enter the house, and jumped in surprise when he spoke. "Afternoon, Alice. Did you get the ice like I asked?" he said as he hung his coat and hat on the hook. Alice calmed down the moment she realized it was her grandfather and said, "Yes, Grandfather, I did." He walked behind her and patted her shoulder.

"Good girl. Dinner smells good," he said as he migrated to the kitchen and lifted the lid to the pot of boiled cabbage, releasing the scent of cooked vegetables. Alice stirred her own food, and realized that it had gotten cold. She sighed and decided to deal with her room-temperature meal. As her grandfather fixed himself a bowl of food, she asked, "How was work today?"

He sat across the table from her and seasoned his food. "It went well. The Dorsey's didn't have much for me to do around their house, not even any yard work." Alice nodded to show she was listening. The Dorsey's, a family that lived a few blocks away, were one of the few families that didn't get hit hard by the Crash. They owned a large, luxurious house, much like the one Alice and her parents used to live in, and still had the money to live there.

However, the Dorsey's had let go of most of their help to save on money during these tough times, so Alice's grandfather decided to cash in on it. He had approached them and said he'd do their house and yard work for half of what they used to pay their previous employees. The Dorsey's didn't complain, but said their only stipulation was that they would take his help when they wanted it.

So, some weeks they needed the yard mowed, other weeks, they didn't. So, work from the Dorsey's could be hit and miss at times. "Well, if they had no work for you, what did you do?" Alice asked before taking a bite of cabbage. Her grandfather dabbed his mouth with a napkin and said, "I went out the rest of the neighborhood and asked if there was anything people wanted done. I ran a few errands for some elderly people, and at one point watched somebody's children for about an hour while they went out to pick up groceries."

Alice nodded. Her grandfather wasn't telling her this, but she knew what this low amount of work meant; less money. She knew they were already getting low in funds, and with her grandfather only getting occasional work, they were running lower and lower each day. It wouldn't be much longer before they were completely broke. Alice didn't want to think about what that would mean.

Her mind suddenly drifted back to the paperboy, to the desperate-look in his eyes. Would she and her grandfather ever get to that point? Would they get to where a penny could be the only thing between life and death? She shuddered at the thought. "Alice, do you feel well? You have hardly touched your dinner," her grandfather said as he touched her forehead.

She waved his hand away and told him, "I feel fine…..There's just a bit on my mind is all." He sighed and sat down in the chair next to her. "Alice, if you're worried about our financial situation, don't be. I'm going to make sure you have clothes on your back and food on your plate, even if I have to work myself into an early grave," he said firmly. Alice smiled sadly.

She knew her grandfather meant well, but there was no way he could say that they'd always have enough money for those things. If you had asked people a year ago if they ever thought they'd never have the money to buy food, they would have laughed and thought that was ridiculous. Now, people were stashing away all of their change, selling their valuables, and sacrificing so much just to have a bite of food in their stomachs.

Anything could happen. Alice stared down at her hands in her lap and asked, "How much longer do you think people will have to live like this?" The old man sighed and told her, "Honestly, I don't know, but people are stronger than you may think. They'll find a way to pull through these hard times, as will we. You've just got to keep the faith." Alice nodded.

Her grandfather was one of the wisest people she knew, and his words always brought her comfort. However, she had a feeling a lot of people were losing the 'faith' as things got worse. How much longer could people hope that things would get better before they gave up? Alice felt that it wouldn't last much longer, but she wasn't about to let her grandfather know that.

She stood up and walked over to the stove, bowl of cold cabbage in hand. She then dumped the contents back into the pot of leftovers. When there was nothing left in the bowl, she placed it in the sink and said, "I'll wash the dishes in the morning, grandfather, but right now I'm going to bed. Goodnight." He returned the formality as Alice slipped into her room.

She closed the door behind her and leaned her back against it. She then let out a long, exhausted sigh. The elephant in the room instantly made itself known; a small box under the edge of Alice's bed. She walked over to the bed and picked the box up. It wasn't all that heavy, perhaps a pound or so. The box, and its contents, had been a gift from her parents before they sent her off to live with her grandfather.

She opened the wooden lid and was faced with twenty-dollars in paper and change; all the money her parents had laying around the house. They had given this money to her in case of an emergency, or if times got really tough. She had refused the money, but her parents had insisted, saying that her well-being was more important than their's. It had touched Alice that they cared so much about her.

However, it pained her to take the money. This was all they had in their possession, and it could have lasted them a few months if they stretched it. But they had decided to give the small fortune to Alice. Her grandfather didn't know she had this money; nobody except Alice and her parents knew it existed, and she wanted it to stay like that. Then, with slight reluctance, she reached into the box and took out twenty cents.

She placed it on the nightstand beside her bed so she would see it in the morning when she got up. Alice then closed the box and stashed it back underneath her bed, out of sight. With a sigh, she changed into her sleeping clothes and climbed into her bed, where she laid down and stared at the twenty cents on the nightstand.

She hadn't intended to ever go into her parent's money unless absolutely necessary, but there was something she felt she had to do, and that twenty cents would make sure it happened. Closing her eyes, she told herself she would be doing a good thing tomorrow, and went to sleep.

_~O~_

Shun sat up from his makeshift bed on the floor and stretched his muscles, his joints popping as he did so. He could feel the dull ache in his lower back from laying on the hard floor, but he had long gotten used to it. He glanced out the window; dawn hadn't come yet.

Shun was usually the first awake, and the first to leave in the mornings. He climbed up to his feet and walked over to the box in the far corner of the room that housed everyone's clothes. Rummaging around in the box, he pulled out several articles of clothing and got dressed for the day ahead. Much to his surprise, Shun found himself filled with a renewed energy.

Maybe it was because he was getting a second shot at keeping his job, and his brain was motivating him to do his best. Or maybe he had just gotten an exceptionally good night's rest. Whichever it was, he liked the feeling of it. Once dressed, he walked over to where his grandfather lay on the floor and said quietly, "I'm gone. Be back later tonight."

The old man was sound asleep, though, and didn't hear the raven-haired teen. Shun then quietly walked across the room, being careful not to step on Dan, who slept on the floor as well. When he reached the door, Shun grabbed his hat from the hook and headed out. He walked past the rest of the handmade houses his homeless neighbors had made. Many of them looked as if they would fall apart if the wind blew just right, and it was very possible that they could.

On the edges of the street were metal barrels filled with trash that had been burned the night before. The embers still radiated with heat, and Shun could feel the warmth as he walked by. This was how people lived when they had nothing.

They'd eat whatever they could find, and burn whatever could burn to stay warm during the night. It wasn't how people were meant to live in this day and age, but it wasn't like any of them had chose this life. It all had simply happened one day. Well, for most people, at least. Shun and his family had never really had a lot of money to begin with.

His father had never really been in the picture, and after his mother passed away, he was left to live with his grandfather, whose health was already starting to fail. So, it had always somewhat been up to Shun to bring home money. The Crash only made finding money harder, though. Shun was thankful he had been able to find a job after everything went downhill; he was one of the lucky ones.

_But if I don't start selling more papers, I can kiss this job goodbye….., _he thought to himself. The idea of being jobless in this kind of economy terrified him. It already took three people's income just to put food on the table back home, and to pay for his grandfather's medicine. If Shun were to lose his job, then something would have to give; the meds, or the food, and it was clear which would have to be let go.

They needed food, simple as that. Shun hated the thought of having no other choice but to slowly let his last family member die faster and suffer through it. At least with the medicine, his grandfather was dying a bit slower, and wasn't in as much pain. Shun shook the thoughts away; he didn't need to go into work with dark thoughts weighing on his mind. After several minutes of walking, Shun reached the publishing office. He stepped inside, the brass bell overhead chiming as the door swung open.

Immediately, he was hit with smell of hot, fresh ink and parchment; the start of a new day. Stacks of newspapers were lined up against the wall, waiting to be picked up. Shun walked over to one of the stacks and grabbed the string. "Remember our deal," a harsh voice said.

Shun turned around and found his boss standing behind him, cigar in hand. "I wouldn't forget it for the world, Mr. Wade," he said. The boss flicked cigar ashes in Shun's direction and said, "Better not." He then retreated to his office and slammed the door shut behind him. Shun let go of a breath he didn't realize he had been holding. He had a week to meet his quota. If he didn't, then he would be fired.

_No pressure, right? _Shun knew it wouldn't be easy to go from selling a couple of papers a day to almost the entire stack, but he had to try. With his stack of newspapers in hand, Shun left out of the publishing office and walked the block to his post. Hardly anybody was out in the city this early; the only ones awake were shopkeepers, who were preparing their stores for the new day.

Shun dropped the papers on the ground, took out his knife, and cut the string. He then grabbed one of the papers and skimmed over the headlines, giving himself some material to advertise to potential costumers. There really wasn't anything too eye-catching; just more news on the economy's current state. "I don't get how they keep calling this news….It's not new to anyone," Shun mumbled to himself.

He thought back to the man who slapped the paper from his hands the other day. That man had been right; nobody needed a newspaper to tell them how bad the world was. All they had to do was step outside and see for themselves. Shun sat down on the edge of the sidewalk and waited for the streets to fill with people. About an hour passed, and that was when he started seeing people walking through the city. He stood up, took a paper in his hand, and went to work.

_~O~_

Alice woke up and immediately grabbed a dress from her closet. She changed and made herself presentable to the public; light make-up, brushed hair, and so on. Once she was done with that, she grabbed the twenty cents from her nightstand and placed it in her dress pocket.

She couldn't leave the house just yet, though; she had promised to do the dishes. So, without another moment's hesitation, she hurried to the kitchen, and much to her surprise, she found that the dishes had already been washed. A slight smile crossed her lips. _Grandfather. _No longer having the dishes to worry about, nothing else stood in her way of leaving the house.

Alice smoothed out the wrinkles in her dress and left out, locking the door behind her. Despite it being early in the morning, the day was already getting hot. Sweat instantly started to form on her forehead, and as she hurried into town, she had to keep wiping it away. Traffic wasn't as heavy as it had been the day before, so crossing a street wasn't a problem.

Retracing her path from yesterday, Alice found herself at the ice store, but she wasn't in town for another block of ice. She looked down the street and found the paperboy standing in the same place he had been the day before; he was why she was here. From afar, she watched as he waved the day's paper in the air, shouting headlines. People would either look at him as they walked by, or completely ignore him.

Why waste your money on something you already knew? Alice's hand drifted to her dress pocket. She could feel the twenty cents through the fabric. _It's going to a good cause, _she told herself. With those words firmly planted in her mind, she took a deep breath and made her way towards the paperboy. He caught sight of her out of the corner of his eye, and lowered the paper he had been waving.

"Hey, you're that girl from yesterday, the one who helped me try to salvage that paper," he said. Alice nodded. A slight grin formed on his lips, and Alice took note of how a smile was a good look on him. He then told her, "I don't think I got to thank you for helping me. Thanks." Alice thought about how this person was different from the one she met the other day.

This person was calm, a bit more positive. The one she met yesterday had been desperate and stricken with panic. Alice wondered what could have happened in twenty-four hours to make him do a complete one-eighty. "So, uh, what exactly are you doing back here?" he asked.

Alice snapped back into focus and remembered why she had gone into the city to begin with. She reached into her pocket and said, "I wanted to give you this. Hold out your hand." Confused, the paperboy held out his hand, and Alice dropped the twenty cents into his palm. His eyes widened. "What's this for?" he asked, dumbfounded.

Alice adverted her gaze from him when she said, "Well, I figured I'd buy myself a paper, and reimburse you for the one that got ruined yesterday." The paperboy was silent for a moment, then finally said, "No, I can't let you do that. If you want to buy a paper, then fine. But I'm not going to let you pay for a paper you didn't ruin. I can either give you your ten cents back, or let you have a second paper."

Alice turned and looked him right in the eyes. He was serious, but so was she. Folding her arms over her chest, Alice said sternly, "I'm not letting you give me my money back, and I'm not taking a second paper. If I took a second paper for this, then you're still out the money for the one from yesterday. Just give me one paper and take the rest of the money."

Something in the paperboy's eyes told Alice that he knew she wasn't going to back down, and this brought a smile to her face. He glanced down at the money in his hand and asked, "Are you sure you want to waste your money like this? You might need that ten cents for something later on." Alice reached out and folded his fingers over the money and said, "Take it, please. I'm doing this because I want to."

He seemed to examine her for a moment, as if debating on whether or not this might have been some kind of trick. In the end, he took the money and slipped it into his pant's pocket. "Thank you. I appreciate it," he said, "but I do have one question. Why? You didn't have to do this, you know. You weren't the one who ruined that paper."

Alice met his gaze and told him, "Yesterday, when you were panicking about having the paper taken out of your pay….It made me realize just how real all of this is, and I didn't feel right knowing I had some money on me when I'd done nothing to earn it, while somebody else, who is struggling to make a few pennies, has nothing and is dependent on every cent of their paycheck….Please, don't really think of it as a handout. I know some people get offended at handouts….Think of it as my way of trying to give something back."

Alice waited for his response, and it felt like forever before he finally spoke. "Thank you." Alice looked at him in surprise. She had expected him to have called her out for something like pitying him, or having nothing better to do than make him feel worse about his financial situation. Instead, he thanked her.

He smiled, a genuine smile, and said, "Your kindness, it makes me wish more people were like that…They're not, though. This Depression…..It's made a lot of them forget that there are other people out there struggling just as much as they are. And because of that, people don't care as much about others as they used to….You're different from them, I can tell."

Alice felt her face fill with heat, and instantly turned away, hoping he wouldn't spot her blush. "What's your name?" he asked suddenly, "I want to be able to thank you properly." Alice felt her blush die away, and if he saw it, he made no notion of pointing it out. She turned back to face him and said, "Alice." He smiled and bowed slightly. "Thank you for your generosity, Alice."

Alice couldn't help but giggle. It was strange, being spoken to and addressed so formally. She liked it, though. It made her feel like she was important. The paperboy straightened up and chuckled. "What about you? Don't you have a name?" she asked.

The paperboy stopped chuckling, but his smile stayed. "My name's Shun," he told her. Alice let his name sink in. It was different, but in a good way. She felt that the name suited him; a unique name for a unique person. "Well, Shun, I'm glad you're thankful for my generosity," she said with a curtsy, playing on the whole proper bit. He chuckled and said, "Here, let me get you your paper."

Shun reached down and retrieved one of the papers from the stack. He then handed it to Alice. She reached out and took the paper, which she folded beneath her arm upon receiving it. "Thank you." She then said, "Well, I think I better head back home. I didn't tell my grandfather I was going into town today, and I don't want him coming home early and finding me gone.

He worries so much already, and I don't need to add onto it." Alice thought she saw something like grief flash in Shun's eyes, but then he smiled and it was gone. "Yeah, don't need to make an old man worry," he said. Alice nodded and started to walk away.

As she did, she turned around and said, "Thanks for the paper, Shun." He waved his hand nonchalantly and said back, "It's nothing. Just my job." Alice turned around and continued to walk the way back home, unable to make the smile on her face fade. She had done the right thing, and had no regrets.

* * *

Thank you all for the reviews so far. I'm glad to know you all liked the first chapter, and I hope you all like this chapter just as much, if not more. Anywho, please do read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	3. Pressure

_~O~_

Shun walked through the door of the publishing office and sat his stack of leftover papers down. When he did, he counted how many he didn't sell; he had twelve left out of the original twenty. It was more than he had been selling, but nowhere near what his quota should have been. _Maybe the boss will see that I'm at least trying and cut me some slack, _Shun thought to himself.

He knew that would never happen, though. His boss wanted him gone, simple as that. But at the same time, Mr. Wade was a man of his word, and if he promised Shun could keep his job if he met the quota, then he'd let him keep his job, despite how much it would upset him. With a heavy sigh, Shun walked over to the office and knocked on the door.

His boss glanced up from his desk and said gruffly, "You're late getting back." Shun approached the desk and said, "I'm sorry. I was just trying to see if I could get in a few extra sales. You don't have to charge me for the overtime."

His boss scoffed and said coldly, "I wasn't planning on paying you for the overtime anyway. Now, on to business. Did you sell anything today? Or did you come up empty-handed like last week." Shun narrowed his eyes and reached into his pocket. He pulled out the change that rested there and placed the money on the desk. Boss Wade stared at the money.

"I made a few sales," he said defiantly. The boss chuckled, leaned back in his chair, and said, "Well, it's definitely the most you've brought back in a while, but it's nowhere near your quota. I suggest you start picking up your pace, or else by the end of the week, you're gone." Shun tensed. He had worked hard to make that little bit of money. To think he still had to double, even triple the money, felt like an impossible task.

But he had to try. If he didn't, or if he just gave up, his grandfather would suffer, and it would be all his fault. Shun didn't want to be the reason for his grandfather's lack of medicine. "I'll meet your quota in due time," he said stubbornly. Boss Wade pulled out a cigar and as he was lighting it, said, "If you say so, kid. Now, get out of here so I can lock up."

Shun nodded and was about to leave the office, but stopped right before crossing the threshold. "Wait, it's payday. Where's my money?" he asked. Boss Wade flicked the ash from the end of his cigar and said, "Oh, I forgot to mention this to you, but I'm cutting your pay in half this week." Shun felt his eyes go wide. "What!" he shouted, "You can't do that!"

Boss Wade stood up from behind his desk to grab and ashtray on the other side of the office. "Actually, I can. Since you're in limbo between employed and unemployed, I have every right to cut, or even eliminate your pay, until I know whether or not I'm going to be keeping you around. Call it a safety net, one that ensures I don't lose money on some worthless employee," he said nonchalantly as he flicked ashes into the tray.

Shun stared in disbelief. His boss was doing everything in his power to push the odds out of Shun's favor. It wasn't right. If times had been any different, Shun would have left and gone to seek employment somewhere else, but he didn't have that option now. Jobs were few and far between.

He could go months without ever getting another chance. This was something he couldn't afford, though. His grandfather would need another refill of medicine soon, and if Shun didn't have the money for it, then the old man would only get sicker and be in more pain.

Mr. Wade reached into his coat pocket and threw a small handful of change at Shun. "There's your pay. Now, scram, before you give me a headache," the boss said coldly. Shun was fighting the urge to walk out, to leave and never come back. He didn't want to kneel down and pick up money off the ground; that only showed just how desperate he was. But he needed every cent he could get.

So, pushing past his pride, Shun knelt down and scooped up the money from the ground. He didn't look up, but he could practically feel his boss grinning smugly. Shun tucked the money away in his pocket and hurried out of the office, refusing to look his boss in the eye.

When he stepped outside of the publishing office, he quickly discovered it had started to rain. Water ran off the rooftops of buildings and pooled in holes along the ground. Some people had placed buckets outside to collect the water; it was free, after all. Shun cursed under his breath and pulled the collar of his coat up around his neck in an attempt to keep some of the water off of him.

With a heavy sigh, he ventured out into the rain. The water was cold and cut through his clothes, even his shoes, which got soaked in a matter of minutes. Mud from the streets caked his shoes and the legs of his pants. His clothes would stay dirty for a while, too. At least, until they found a chance to get them washed. That could take some time, though.

Shun stopped walking and stood in the rain. His rage and anger suddenly came to the surface, and he kicked the closest thing to him, which just so happened to be a trashcan. His foot made contact and the can fell over, spilling its contents.

There was a small dent in the metal from where the force of his kick had bent it in. One kick wasn't enough, and before Shun even realized it, he was repeatedly kicking the trashcan, yelling curses at it as if it had been the cause of all of his strife.

Now, the trashcan looked at if it had been through a hailstorm. Shun stepped back and assessed the damage he had done, then looked around to make sure nobody had seen him completely lose it. There was no one around. With a sigh of relief, he bent down and picked up the trashcan.

The can no longer stood up straight; it leaned slightly to the side. Now that his rage had settled down, Shun hurried back home. He walked through the little community of shanty homes and saw that, because of the rain, nobody was out gathered around the barrels burning trash to stay warm; they were all inside to escape the weather.

Shun reached the house he shared with Dan and his family, and stepped inside. He took of his soaked, muddy shoes and left them by the door so he wouldn't track in any of the grime. "Shun? That you, buddy?" Dan asked. Shun took his waterlogged hat and coat off and hung them up on the makeshift hooks by the door. "Yeah, it's me," he said back to his friend. He then walked into the room that they all slept in.

Dan looked at him and his eyes widened. "Shun, you're soaked!" he said. Shun glanced down at himself and said, "Yeah, kind of got caught up in the rain on the way home." Dan jumped up from where he was sitting on the floor and said, "Come on, buddy, let's get you some dry clothes before you get sick."

Shun wanted to argue with his friend and tell him that he could deal with the damp clothes he had on, for they didn't have that many articles of clothing to begin with, but the cold was starting to get to him, and the thought of changing into some dry clothes sounded nice. So, he kept his mouth shut as Dan rummaged through the box they used to store their clothing.

The brunette tossed Shun a shirt and pair of pants. "Go on and get changed," he told him. Shun nodded and slipped into the small bathroom, if it could be called that, and put on the dry clothes. Instantly, he felt better. Now that he was changed, Shun stepped out of the bathroom and handed the damp clothes to Dan. "Thanks," he said with a smile. Dan waved his hand dismissively and said, "It's nothing."

The brunette then draped Shun's rain-soaked clothes over the back of a chair so they could dry. Shun walked across the room to where his makeshift bed was on the floor, and laid down. His body gave a sigh of relief. "Another rough day?" Dan asked. Shun closed his eyes and said, "You have no idea."

Shun hadn't told his friend about the possibility of being fired from his job yet, because he knew if he did, then the brunette would probably try to take the matter into his own hands, and Shun didn't want that. This was his problem to deal with, not Dan's.

From the other side of the room, Shun heard his grandfather's wheezing. The sound made the raven-haired teen's skin crawl like nails on a chalkboard. "We might not be able to get his medicine refilled this time," Shun admitted. Dan looked at the raven-haired teen with wide eyes. "What? Why not?" he asked. Shun sighed and told his friend, "My boss…..He cut my pay in half this week….."

Dan glanced over at where the old man slept, and Shun could see the sadness in his eyes; his grandfather might as well been part of Dan's family, too. "Why in the hell would that bastard do that?" the brunette asked.

Shun adverted his gaze from his friend and said with a sigh, "I haven't been selling very many papers lately…..My boss is getting tired of losing money, so he's been talking about letting me go….He's giving me till the end of the week to reach my quota. If I don't, then I'm gone…Dan, I can't afford to lose this job. I might not find another one, and if I do, then it would probably pay less than this one…."

Shun felt tears stinging at his eyes. Earlier, he had been filled with rage at the unfairness of it all. Now, the bitter side of reality was finally starting to set in. He shook his head and said unsteadily, "I don't know what to do…..We can hardly afford his medicine as it is. If we lose this income then there's no way we could continue to buy it…Dan, I don't want to be the reason he dies a painful death. I couldn't live with myself….."

Dan placed his hand on Shun's shoulder and said, "It wouldn't be your fault. This is something that is beyond your control, Shun. All you can do is try your best to reach your quota. If you can't and that bastard fires you, then he's the one to blame. Not you. And if you do lose your job, then I'll just try to bring in more money until you can find another job. We'll get through this, Shun. Don't beat yourself up and give up hope just yet."

Shun stared at his friend for a moment, then smiled sadly. The times might have been tough, and he might have lost a lot of things, but of all the things he had been able to hold onto after the Crash, he was glad he had been able to keep his friendship with Dan. If their families hadn't come together after the Crash, then they both probably would have been out on the streets begging for money, and Shun's grandfather would probably had died a long time ago. "Thanks," Shun said to his friend, "I don't know what I'd do without you."

Dan grinned and said, "You obviously would be missing out on being around the best person of all time." Shun rolled his eyes and shoved his friend's shoulder. "Be quiet. Only you can ruin a touching moment, you know that?" Shun said with a chuckle. Dan shrugged his shoulders and said, "What can I say? I try." Shun couldn't help but shake his head and smile.

Dan laid back on his own bed and said, "So, you know that girl a few houses down? The one with the pigtails?" Shun arched an eyebrow and said, "Yeah, why?" Dan propped himself up on his elbows and said, "Don't tell anyone else, but I think she's into me." Shun couldn't help but laugh. Dan stared, obviously taken aback by the raven-haired teen's reaction.

"What's so funny?" the brunette asked. Shun forced his laughter down and said, "I remember her screaming at you for something last week. Is that what you consider to be how somebody shows interest in you?" Dan rolled his eyes and told his friend, "Laugh it up, but I'm telling you, she likes me. I can see it in her eyes." Shun laughed again. Sometimes his friend's logic was the best thing to hear.

When his laughter died down, Shun remembered the girl he met earlier in the day. "Speaking of girls, I met one today. She was nice," Shun said as he stared up at the ceiling. Dan scoffed and said, "A girl actually spoke to you? You didn't scare her off?" Shun cast him a glare, but figured he deserved Dan's teasing after laughing at his friend's theory.

"No, I didn't scare her off," Shun said with a roll of his eyes, "She paid for a paper that somebody ruined yesterday so I wouldn't get in trouble with my boss for the lost money. On top of that, she bought a paper, too." Dan stared in surprise. "Wow," the brunette said, "That was nice of her. I didn't think people still did nice things for others anymore."

Shun nodded in agreement. Dan was right; people helping others for nothing in return was hard to come by lately. When the Crash first hit, some people offered their charity. These were people who felt that the Depression wouldn't last that long.

However, when they realized it would last a lot longer than a year, they began to hold onto their own money and refused to give anymore out. Shun placed his hands behind his head and told Dan, "She said she didn't feel right knowing that she had money on her and didn't do anything to earn it, while others were out there working themselves to death for a fraction of what she had."

Dan laid back on his bed and said, "She must be one of those rich people who escaped the Crash with some money on them." Shun shook his head. "No," he said, "she wasn't dressed like somebody who had money. Her clothes were worn and had patches that weren't done by professionals. If she had money to spare, she wouldn't have been wearing such old clothes."

Dan was silent for a moment, which meant the brunette was thinking. Finally, he said, "I don't know, buddy. Maybe she robbed a bank or something. I don't have any explanation other than that, or she comes from money." Shun closed his eyes and said to his friend, "Let's not think too much of it…..Besides, I'll probably never see her again, so no use dwelling on it….."

Dan moved around on his bed and threw the blanket over his body. "Good point," he said with a yawn, "Well, I'm turning in. Night." Shun returned the formality to his friend and rolled over onto his side, where he closed his eyes and slowly fell asleep to the sound of rainfall.

* * *

It's raining. Again. Ugh, so tired of rain. Where I live, when it rains, it makes things even more humid, and humidity is no friend of mine. I so want to move somewhere colder, someplace where humidity doesn't exist. Ugh, maybe one day. Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so read and please leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	4. Assault

_~O~_

The old man's wheezing woke Shun in the middle of the night. It didn't wake anyone else. At least, not yet. The wheezing, which had done nothing but get worse as of late, was like nails on a chalkboard to Shun; he hated the sound. Taking a quick glance around the room, Shun saw that both of Dan's parents had returned home at some point that night. Even though they shared the same bed, it was clear there was an imaginary barrier between the two.

The Crash had done nothing but make them grow apart, and after Dan's mother took up her job of roaming the streets and offering company to other men for money, things only seemed to get worse between the two. It pained Shun to watch them drift apart; they might as well have been his parents, too. He sighed and glanced over at where his wheezing grandfather lay.

Shun's skin crawled, and he knew there was no way he would get back to sleep until his grandfather's coughing and wheezing was brought to an end. So, he carefully climbed off the mattress and stepped outside. It was still raining, but not like it had been earlier when Shun was leaving work. The raven-haired teen walked over to a small bucket that had been placed outside of the house.

Clean rainwater almost filled the bucket all the way to the rim. Off to the side was a small, metal can. Shun picked up the can and dipped it in the bucket, collecting water. With a full can in hand, he retreated back into the house and skillfully navigated through the dark room until he got to his grandfather. Kneeling down, Shun lightly shook the old man's shoulder. "Grandfather, wake up," he whispered so he wouldn't wake anyone.

The old man's eyes slowly opened and found Shun. "What is it?" he asked gruffly. Shun handed the can of water to his grandfather and said quietly, "You were coughing and wheezing again. Here, drink some water. It'll help." His grandfather reached for the can with a trembling hand; Shun was surprised he had the strength to even hold the can without dropping it. He sat by and watched his grandfather drink the water down.

When the old man was done, he handed the can back to Shun and said, "Thank you." Shun nodded and took the can back outside, where he sat it beside the water bucket. He then glanced up at the sky. Despite the rain clouds, he could tell dawn was on the way. _No point in going back to sleep, _he thought bitterly.

With a heavy sigh, Shun went back inside the house, grabbing his clothes from yesterday. They had dried overnight, and the mud that had been caked on them had begun to flake off. "Good enough," he muttered to himself. Clothes in hand, Shun stepped into the bathroom and quickly changed. He tried to knock off as much of the dried mud as he could; some of it was still wet and did nothing but smear on his pants.

He growled and left it be. Now that he had changed clothes, Shun stepped out of the bathroom, threw the clothes he had slept in back over near the storage box, and started to walk towards the door. "Leaving early, aren't we?" his grandfather asked. "An early start never hurt anyone," Shun said as he slipped on his shoes and coat, both of which were still damp. He then turned back and met his grandfather's weak gaze.

"I'll be back tonight. You just rest, alright?" The old man nodded. Shun left it at that and hurried out of the house. Even though it wasn't raining very hard, it didn't take long for Shun's already-damp coat to get soaked through again.

He tried to ignore the chills that shot through his body, but that was easier said than done. However, he pushed through the miserable walk to the publishing office, the need for money giving him the motivation to do so. When he finally got there, he stepped inside, relieved to be out of the rain. As Shun was hanging his wet clothes on the coat-rack by the door, he heard Boss Wade say, "Don't drag any mud through here. I just swept."

Shun mumbled several obscenities under his breath; he wasn't in the mood to put up with his boss. But to keep from tracking mud through the office, he removed his shoes and left them by the door. Shun then walked over and grabbed one of the stacks of papers.

The warmth that radiated from the paper told him they had just been printed. "I didn't realize it was you that walked in here. A bit early, aren't we?" Mr. Wade asked gruffly. Shun glanced over his shoulder and said, "I woke up early and there wasn't enough time to go back to bed, so I figured I might as well get a head-start on things."

Boss Wade laughed and said with a flick of his cigar, "Don't expect me to add this onto your pay. Your shift doesn't start for another hour, so until then, you're not on the clock." Shun returned his attention back to the newspapers and muttered, "As expected…" He reached down and lifted the papers off the floor, then began to make his way out. But just as he was about to leave the office, his boss stopped him.

"Wait a minute," he said. Shun rolled his eyes and braced himself for whatever cruelty his boss was about to throw at him now. But when he turned around, Boss Wade handed a small umbrella to him. Shun stared for a moment and said, "Uh, thanks, Boss." Mr. Wade rolled his eyes and said, "It's not a gift. It's raining out there and I don't want the papers getting drenched. Make sure they stay dry."

The boss then retreated back into his private office, leaving Shun to fight the urge to either throw the umbrella down, or at the back of Mr. Wade's head. Instead, he swore under his breath and left out of the publishing office, opening the umbrella when he stepped out into the rain. Shun walked down the block till he reached his usual selling spot.

The ground, naturally, was soaked from the rain, so he had no choice but to hold the massive stack of papers, while also juggling the umbrella. An hour went by, marking the official time for Shun's shift to start, and already, his lower back and feet were screaming for him to sit down. But unless he wanted to sit in puddles of water, he had no other choice but to stand.

It also didn't take him very long to realize there wasn't nearly the usual amount of people out on the streets. Because of the rain, most sane people were going to stay inside their homes. Shun swore under his breath; there was no way he was going to sell many peoples today. On top of that, he knew Mr. Wade wouldn't cut him any slack because of the weather.

But Shun couldn't call it a day. If he did, then his boss would do nothing but further dock his pay, or even go ahead and fire him. So, Shun decided to tough it out. He stood there on that street corner, shouting headlines at anybody that passed by. The hours drug by, and for a while, Shun felt like the day would never end.

By noon, he had yet to sell a single paper. As he stood there, aching back and feet, he suddenly began to wish that Alice would show up; somebody to talk to would have been nice. He knew the odds of her showing up would be slim, though. He sighed and saw out of the corner of his eye that a stranger was heading his way.

As the stranger went by, Shun called out the headlines, trying desperately to get the man to buy a paper. But when the stranger rounded the corner and vanished from sight, Shun felt his shoulders sag with defeat. He then muttered under his breath, "This is going to be a long day…."

_~O~_

Alice looked out the window of her room and sighed; she never liked dreary weather. All rain did was turn everything to mud, and sometimes made everything humid, which, in turn, made the air feel sticky. It also meant she couldn't do anything outside, such as tend to the flowers she had planted around her grandfather's house several years ago.

And going into the city would require putting on rain-boots and finding an umbrella, then trudging through mud, and Alice didn't feel up to doing any of that. Although, she did want to go and see Shun again. She wanted to go up to him and buy a paper to help him out, then hang around and talk to him. She wanted to know more about him, his life, dreams, and aspirations.

Not knowing any of these things left Alice with somewhat of an empty-feeling, as if she needed to know things about Shun in order to complete some void in her life. Alice shook her head. "I'm losing it," she muttered to herself, "He probably could care less about who I am…" The thought made her sad. How could somebody she had only met twice, suddenly become the center of her thoughts?

Alice looked back out of the rain-splattered window and watched the drops fall, turning the ground to mud. The rain would be gone by tomorrow, thus drying everything up. With everything dry, she could easily make the walk into town; she could see Shun again. The thought brought a smile to her face. With this thought in the back of her mind, Alice walked over to her bed and laid down, eagerly awaiting the day when the rain stopped.

_~O~_

Night had fallen and Shun had begun the walk back to the publishing office, the large stack of papers in his hands. He hadn't sold a single paper that day, and he knew that this would set his quota back drastically, but it wasn't his fault. The weather had been bad, and because of that, potential buyers were scarce. And any people that did go by, didn't want to stop in the rain long enough to buy a paper that would just get soaked.

Shun knew his boss wouldn't see it that way. His boss would yell at him, call him worthless and then continue to wonder why he was even paying Shun in the first place; it was possible he would even fire Shun after this. The raven-haired teen sighed. His arms hurt from holding the stack of newspapers all day, and he wanted nothing more than to throw them down onto the wet, muddy ground.

He couldn't, though. If his boss discovered he ruined the papers, he would dock them from Shun's paycheck. And a whole stack of papers might as well been equivalent to a week's worth of work, maybe even more, seeing as his pay had been cut in half. Shun swore under his breath. He hated having to walk around on thin ice just for a pitiful paycheck, but it was that pitiful paycheck that helped him get his grandfather's medicine. _Or, at least it did, _he thought bitterly.

He was halfway to the publishing office when the rain finally stopped. Shun stopped walking and folded the umbrella closed, no longer needing to use it to keep the papers dry. He then hooked the umbrella's handle to his wrist and was about to continue on his way when somebody stepped out from the shadows of a nearby building. Shun felt the hairs on the back of his stand on end; something wasn't right about this.

He couldn't make any features out of the stranger, for a scarf hid his face from sight. He also wore a long, dark coat, and his hand was tucked away in one of the pockets. Shun swallowed his fear and said, "Um, can I help you?" The man's eyes, which were the only visible thing on his face, narrowed at Shun.

"Give me your money," the stranger demanded, his voice muffled by the scarf. Shun felt his eyes widen; he was being mugged. It shouldn't have surprised him, seeing as crime had catapulted since the Crash, but he had never been in this kind of situation before.

He knew he had to be careful, because one wrong move could result in the thief attacking him. "I'm sorry, but I don't have any money on me. I swear," Shun said cautiously. The mugger suddenly pulled a small pistol out of his coat pocket and pointed it at Shun's chest. "I said, give me your money." Shun felt his heart try to lurch out of his chest.

He slowly put the stack of papers down and raised his hands to show he wasn't looking for a fight. He then said, "I told you, I don't have any money. Please, if you just go on your way, I won't make a report to the police. We can go on and pretend none of this ever happened. Alright?" The stranger pulled the hammer back, loading a round into the gun's chamber and said, "I don't believe you. You have a job, which means you have money. And if you don't hand it over willingly, then I'll take it from your dead body."

Shun knew there was no point in trying to talk this thief into leaving him alone, which left him with only one other option; fight back. "Alright, alright," Shun said to the thief, "I'll give you my money. Just let me get it out of my pockets, okay?" Shun pretended to reach into his coat pockets, but quickly grabbed the umbrella on his wrist.

Then, with a good, strong swing, he knocked the pistol out of the mugger's hands. The gun went flying and landed in a puddle of water, leaving it useless. The mugger swore and started after Shun. The raven-haired teen quickly dropped the umbrella and ran.

He could hear the thief's feet pounding behind him; the guy was fast. Shun then felt something grab onto the collar of his shirt and pull him into a nearby alley. He was then thrown on the damp ground, the thief standing over him. "Please, just leave me alone. I don't have any money. I swear," Shun said desperately.

The man didn't seem to care, though. He grabbed the collar of Shun's shirt, hoisting the teen to his feet, and slammed his fist into Shun's abdomen. The vanished from Shun's lungs, and he tried desperately to regain control of his breathing. The mugger then slammed Shun into the wall of the alley and landed a punch to his face. Next thing Shun knew, he was thrown back onto the ground, and he could feel his body being kicked repeatedly.

Each kick sent a shockwave of pain throughout his body, and he could feel bones cracking beneath his skin, mainly his ribs. He laid there on the ground, unable to move due to the amount of pain he was in, but he could feel the mugger digging through his pockets and clothes for money.

The thief swore aloud. Shun winced as he said, "I…..told you…" Speaking hurt his battered body, as did breathing. The stranger stood up and ran from the alley, leaving the scene of his crime. Shun tried to sit up, but the slightest movement sent blinding pain through his body.

In an attempt to find himself help, he pushed through the pain and, using the wall as a support, pulled himself to his feet. His legs were weak and trembled beneath his weight. However, the moment he took a step, the pain intensified and jolted through his body. He fell to the ground, which only created more agony. But at that moment, his body didn't want to deal with the pain anymore, and he slipped into unconsciousness.

* * *

I wrote like, half of this yesterday and just did the rest this morning. And since it didn't take me very long, I'm probably going to update my other story as well, since I kind of left it off on a major note. So, anywho, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so please read and leave a chapter on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


	5. A Helping Hand

_~O~_

It was the sunlight that woke Alice up that morning. The yellow rays cut through the sheer curtains of the window by her bed and graced her face. She blinked her eyes several times as they adjusted to the sudden brightness. With a yawn, Alice sat up and rubbed the last bit of sleep from her eyes. A pleasant aroma drifted throughout the house she shared with her grandfather.

She took in a deep breath and smiled; freshly baked bread. Her grandfather used to make bread all the time. She could recall the weekends she would spend the night; he almost always baked a fresh batch of bread for her. However, the Crash had made it difficult to buy the ingredients to make bread, so it had become somewhat of a special treat.

Alice climbed out of her bed and quickly changed into the first thing she pulled out of her closet, which just so happened to be a pale yellow dress. She slipped the dress and hurried to the kitchen, and sure enough, her grandfather was in the process of removing the bread from the oven. "I thought I smelled bread," she said as she sat down at the table. He chuckled and set the pan of bread on the stovetop.

"You thought correctly. It occurred to me the other day that it's been quite some time since I've made any for you, so I figured it would be a nice treat," he said as he cut a slice from the loaf. Steam floated into the air, filling the kitchen with more of the pleasant aroma. Her grandfather then placed the slice of bread on a plate, and handed it to Alice. She reached down and took hold of the bread; it was still hot, but not to the point that it burned her fingers. She bit into it and smiled.

The bread was dense and moist, the way it should be. Alice quickly finished her slice and stood up. "Do you want another?" he grandfather asked. Alice shook her head and told him, "Maybe later. I wanted to go into town today." He raised an eyebrow and asked, "What for? Do you have some errands? I can give you some money if you need it."

Alice quickly shook her head and held up her hands, a sign that she was turning down his offer. "No, it's alright," she said, "I just wanted to get out of the house. Being cooped up inside all day yesterday has made me a little antsy." Alice wasn't completely lying; she did want to get out of the house, but not because of the reason she gave her grandfather.

Her true motive was to see Shun again. The day before, while holed up in the house to avoid the rain, she had been unable to think of anything else; he had dominated her thoughts. And when Alice was unable to take much more, she had decided to see him the day after the rain stopped, which just so happened to be that day. Her grandfather gave her a quizzical-look, then smiled.

"Alright, but be back before nightfall. Muggings have become more frequent, and I don't want you to get hurt." Alice smiled and nodded to show she understood. She then hurried to her room and retrieved the box from its hiding place. After taking out enough money to buy a newspaper, she stashed the box back under her bed and hurried out of the house.

The air was cool and smelled clean after yesterday's rain. Alice took a deep breath and exhaled; she loved the way everything felt after a good rain. Although, she wasn't always too keen on how it turned everything to mud and made her hair do unruly things. Alice tightened her hands around the coins she held and began the walk into town. The streets were somewhat muddy, but not enough to get much on her shoes.

She stepped over puddles of water, making sure not to dirty up the skirt of her dress. Alice retraced her way back into town till she got to the corner where Shun sold papers. She glanced around. He wasn't there. Alice felt disappointment crush her; she had been so looking forward to seeing him again.

Confused, Alice caught the attention of a passerby. "Excuse me," she said to the stranger, "do you know where the paperboy is?" The man shrugged his shoulders and told her, "Not a clue. He hasn't been here all morning. Had to walk three blocks over to buy a paper. Pissed me off." The man walked around Alice without another word; he didn't even give her a chance to thank him for his time.

Alice furrowed her brows. Had Shun possibly been relocated to another part of town? Maybe he had been fired. Alice sighed. There was no way to really know where he had gone. So, with her money in hand, Alice decided to waste time around town, seeing as she had walked all this way; last thing she was going to do was turn around and go back home.

Walking along the sidewalks, Alice would stop and peer into the windows of stores. Inside, most of the stores were empty, the only people being those who worked there. She could see the stress on their faces, and she knew what the cause of their worry was. Would they make any money today? What if they didn't? How would they pay for food? Clothes? Shelter?

It pained Alice to see people struggle like this, but what could she do? She didn't have enough money to go into every store and buy away their worries. If she did, then would probably do it in a heartbeat; she had practically done that for Shun. She had bought those papers from him to help him out. But buying a couple of papers was very different from buying things to help a whole city.

Alice placed her hand on the window of the store she stood in front of and sighed. She was just about to move along, when she heard something coming from the alley that ran down alongside two buildings; it sounded like somebody was in pain. Curious, she stepped into the alley and saw somebody laying behind a large pile of boxes. "Hello? Do you need help?" she asked, keeping her distance in case this person was dangerous.

Alice couldn't see their face; it was hidden behind the boxes. However, she could see their legs, and the blood that stained their tattered clothing. When Alice saw the blood, all cautiousness left her body. She ran down the alleyway to the injured person, kneeling down beside them and tossing the boxes out of the way. When Alice saw their face, she gasped; it was Shun.

A thin line of blood trailed down from the corner of his mouth and from his nose. His eye was black from where somebody had landed a powerful punch. "Shun!" she exclaimed and reached down, carefully helping him into a sitting position. He flinched in pain as she propped him against the wall. Slowly, Shun opened his undamaged eye and looked at her.

"Al….Alice?" he asked, as if unsure about whether or not she was really there. Alice nodded and told him, "It's me….Shun, what happened to you?" The raven-haired teen held on tightly to his ribs and said, "I was…..I was walking to the office last night…..When some guy attacked me…..He tried to make me hand over my money, but…but I didn't have any. He beat me up anyway….."

Shun coughed, and Alice could tell by the contorted-look on his face that it caused him great pain. "You need a doctor, Shun," she stated. Shun shook his head and told her, "No…..Don't take me to a doctor…..We have enough to worry about without a doctor bill being tacked on….."

Alice bit down on her lower lip. What should she do then? Shun refused to seek medical treatment because of his financial situation, but if something wasn't done, then he would only get worse. An idea then popped into Alice's mind. "Then let me take you to my grandfather," she started, "He grew up with somebody who became a doctor, so he might be able to get you treated for no charge. If he does, then my grandfather and I will take care of it, alright?"

Shun looked at her for a moment, as if weighing whether or not to accept her offer. He finally nodded. "Okay…Let's do that," he said weakly. Alice stared at Shun, assessing his injuries. He was pretty beat up, and she knew that he was probably a lot worse on the inside than the outside; there was no way he could make the walk back to her house. She told him,

"Hold on a minute. I'll be right back." Alice stood up from where she was kneeling and ran out into the street. She caught sight of a car coming her way, and waved her hands in the air to catch the driver's attention. The man slowed his car down and said, "You need some help, ma'am?" Alice let out a sigh of relief. "Yes," she said, "my friend is badly hurt. Could you please take us back to my grandfather's house so he can get some help?"

The man examined Alice closely, debating on whether or not to trust her. This was another by-product of the Depression; it had made people weary of each other. People tricked others, stole from them. And because of that, people steered clear of others, even those that genuinely needed help. "Alright, I'll help," the man said. Alice sighed in relief. "Thank you so much," she said. She then ran back into the alley and knelt beside Shun.

"I got somebody to take us home. Can you stand?" she asked. Shun struggled to get to his feet, but with Alice steadying him, he was able to stand. She could see that just standing was causing him immense agony. "It's just to the street," she said, hoping to give him the strength to walk the short distance.

He limped out into the opening, and when the man that agreed to drive them saw Shun, he jumped out of the car and hurried over to help out. He opened the back door to his car and assisted Alice in laying the raven-haired teen on the backseat. "Your friend needs a hospital," the stranger stated.

Alice shook her head. "No, he can't afford a doctor….Plus, he refuses to go….He'll get treatment at my house, so please hurry and take us there," she said flatly. The man nodded and said, "Give me the directions and I'll get you two there as fast as I can."

_~O~_

Driving back to Alice's grandfather's had been much quicker than walking back; half the time, to be exact. When they arrived at the house and got Shun inside, her grandfather hadn't asked questions. He had immediately gotten in contact with his doctor friend, and within the hour, his friend showed up and began treating Shun.

At the moment, the raven-haired teen was in the guest room, which was currently serving as a doctor's office. Alice was sitting at the kitchen table, picking at a slice of bread. Her grandfather sat across from her. "How did you find that boy?" he asked. Alice took a small bite of her bread and said, "I was walking down the sidewalk and heard him in the alley." Her grandfather nodded, then smiled. "You know that boy, don't you?"

Alice felt her eyes widen, and her face heat up. How could her grandfather possibly have known this? She had never mentioned Shun to him. He chuckled and said, "Don't act so surprised, Alice. I could see it in your eyes when you brought him here. If he had been a stranger, you wouldn't have looked at him with such an expression of familiarity. That, and if he had been a total stranger, you would have taken him to the hospital, despite his requests. But seeing as you know him, you respect his wishes."

Alice smiled sadly; her grandfather could read her like an open book. "I met him several days ago, when I went to go get ice. He sells papers nearby, and I saw as he dropped a paper into a puddle of water. Grandfather, he was so panicked, you would have thought it was the end of the world. I tried to help him salvage the paper, and he kept going on about how his boss would dock it from his pay. I told him it was just one paper, and he lost it. It was that moment that I saw, firsthand, just how desperate he was for money. So, the next day, I found him and paid for the paper that was ruined, as well as one for myself to help him out. Grandfather, he was so thankful, and knowing that I had helped somebody out like that made me happy. So, when I found him like that in the alley, I just had to help him."

Her grandfather stood up and walked over to her side of the table, where he placed a hand on her shoulder. "You did a good thing, Alice," he said with a beaming smile, "In a world that's becoming cruel, you remain kind, and it's people like you that will help hold everything together in the end." Alice found herself smiling. If she had had any doubt about helping Shun, her grandfather would have just erased it.

She was about to say something back to him, when the doctor entered the kitchen. Alice stood up from the table, nearly knocked the chair over, and asked, "Will he be alright?" The doctor removed a cloth from his pocket and wiped sweat from his brow.

"He was badly beaten, the worst of his injuries being several broken ribs. However, I have him bandaged up and on morphine for the pain. There's also the matter of him suffering from slight malnutrition, and unless he gets the adequate amount of food he needs, his healing process will take much longer. So, as long as he eats well, he'll eventually return to full-health." Alice's grandfather approached his doctor friend and said, "Thank you so much for your help. Do I owe you anything?"

The doctor shook his head and told him, "Nothing. Think of this as a friendly favor, Michael. You've helped me plenty of times, so I'm glad just to be able to return the gesture." The doctor then picked up his bag and left. Alice glanced down the hallway and said, "I'm going to go check on Shun." She wanted to see him, to see if he looked any better than he did back in the alley.

She reached the guest room and stepped inside. Shun was on the bed, sound asleep. Quietly, Alice stepped inside, making sure not to make any sounds that might wake him up. She saw where the doctor had wrapped Shun's chest in bandages for his damaged ribs, as well as bandages that were being used to cover cuts and scrapes on his arms.

At a glance, Shun didn't look that underfed, but when Alice looked closer, she could see the small signs of somebody who didn't eat nearly enough; sunken facial features, pale skin tone, thinning hair, and bones showing through skin. He wasn't bad as some of the people Alice had seen on the streets, the ones who were close to starving to death, but it was clear Shun had gone several nights without any food.

It made her feel bad to know that she was still living a fairly normal lifestyle, while people like Shun were going to bed hungry. However, if things kept going like they were, then she and her grandfather would soon be in the same boat. They didn't have much money left, and on top of that, her grandfather was finding it harder and harder to find little odd jobs to do around the neighborhood.

Alice sighed and quietly retrieved a chair from the other side of the room. She placed it at Shun's beside, deciding to wait for him to wake up and get more details about who attacked him; perhaps they could find the guy and get some justice. But as she sat there waiting, Alice found herself growing sleepy, and before she realized it, she had laid her head down on the bed beside Shun and fell sound asleep.

* * *

So, I was able to update today, mainly cause I wanted to pass the time till I had to get ready to go out with my aunt. And after today, I have four more days at home, then I leave for college. My dad is starting to get kind of clingy; I am his only child, after all, so he's never had to do any of this before. He'll get used to it, though. I hope. Anywho, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter, so please read and leave a review on the way out. ~Copperpelt~


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